The Voynich Manuscript
by GunjiBunny
Summary: Takes place after my story the Artifact Thief the agents are tasked with locating a new thief who has aspirations to gain powerful artifacts and use them as weapons. Pete/Myka relationship inside.
1. Hua Mulan's War Medal

**AN – So normally I'd direct new people to my first story but I'll make it quick, the OCs in this story are the two agents whose clocks stopped while looking for the Mayan Calendar. So now Jennifer is in the role Leena had for the Warehouse and Jake is a regent who tests artifacts to see if any could be used for good. Please support the official release and I own nothing except for the OCs.**

It was almost four pm, just one more hour before Justin could close up the shop and head home for the night. Some days he loved his job here at Cleveland's Jewelry especially when the new shipment of stones came in or when a piece needed cleaning because that meant staring at a lovely gem for hours at a time. Other days when it was slow like this he just wanted it to end, already the ones on display had been cleaned, twice, just no one was shopping today. Right before the thought of closing early occurred the bell above the door rang out and this beautiful, long legged woman with flowing brown hair came into the shop. She was wearing a modest sundress yellow with daisies up and down it. Walking over to the counter he caught her dazzling blue eyes and flashed her a charming smile which she returned.

"Is there anything I can interest you in ma'am?"

"Yeah, I'll take everything," she said and that's when he noticed the gun in her hand. Feeling his heart stop Justin simply nodded remembering what his dad told him long ago, the jewelry was all insured, replaceable but he wasn't and if they were ever robbed just go along with it. Tossing a burlap sack onto the table the woman wasn't afraid of being caught on camera as she shoving the rings, necklaces, earrings and single stones into the bag. When she was done with the ones in that case she thanked him and left. Once she was gone Justin pressed the silent alarm and tore out some receipt paper to write down as much detail as he could.

As the police were across town taking care of Justin and bringing in a sketch artist Roy sat in his pawn shop his feet up while watching 'Strange yet True' on one of the TVs that were sold in his pawn shop. There was a beep as someone came in, a man with unkempt brown hair and dull blue eyes came in.

"Hey Matt," Roy called out as Matt nodded hello and reached into his bag setting some necklaces along the counter as well as an odd medal. "Whoa interesting, rob a store?"

"No, just found my grandmother's old jewelry and asked to sell it," seeing the medal he put that away, "That's an heirloom not selling it." Roy only nodded and started to estimate the value of the diamonds. Back at the jewelry store Pete and Myka entered taking a look around. One of the cops came up asking why they were there when Pete held up his badge,

"Secret service, been looking for someone who robs stores like this."

"You're looking for a broad who robs stores? Guarding the president must've gotten easy if a case like this calls ya'll in," said one of the cops who were idling around, a few others chuckled.

"What makes you say that?" Myka asked stepping forward.

"Aside from leaving us her name we know who it is, the kid got a good look at her but there's cameras installed and we've reviewed them and came up with a clean image. We even got some fingerprints she left on the glass before she left. Open and shut case." Pete nodded and pulled his partner back.

"Maybe the football was off this time," he said and she sighed nodded with little effort when the Farnsworth buzzed. Moving away from the crowd they opened it up to see Jennifer and Claudia. "Hey ladies, what's up?"

"Thanks to our computer expert here we borrowed the images from the police at the scene knowing that if we want the faster results for your burglar we needed to do it ourselves," she stepped away revealing Jake setting a book on the table before pulling out a copy of the woman's fingerprints and of course he explained what he was doing.

"This is the original Domesday Book which keeps record of every single person ever born and is continuously updating. Of course being an artifact it doesn't get bigger than this but using the right combination of artifacts you can learn anything," he lifted up a police ticket book that looked old, transferring the fingerprints into it he placed it on the book. "Juan Vucetich was the first man to use fingerprinting in police work and these two should give us a name." After a few moments of nothing he sighed and picked up the ticket book putting it back down, still nothing. "Okay," Jake said opening the book and removing the purple glove. Placing his hand on it the Domesday Book glowed and Jake's picture appeared with his name under it. "Well guys it looks like your thief doesn't really exist."

As Myka and Pete drove to their hotel they passed another jewelry store cleverly called 'Family Jewels" causing Pete to pull over and point it out to Myka who clearly didn't get the joke. Before Pete could explain it there was a smash and a moment later the door flew open and a brunette woman ran from the store, jewelry in hand. She had a good head start as the pair started to chase her she turned the corner and vanished down an alley but moments before Pete noticed something odd and looked at Myka to confirm. When they got to the alley she was gone, there was a door down the way that was closing and Pete got to it before it did yanking it open and throwing the man who was there off balance and to the ground.

"Whoa sorry, did you see a long haired woman run this way?" he asked as the man shook his head.

"I just work here and was coming out for a smoke but forgot my lighter."

"And you didn't see anyone…"

"Matt, no sorry," By then Myka caught up and Matt went back inside.

"Think we're dealing with an artifact that erases you from records and from this world?" Myka asked as Pete kept looking at her legs. "Stop it Pete," she said playfully but he snapped his fingers.

"She wasn't running like a she," he said.

"Were you watching her run?" Myka said feeling annoyed.

"Well….yes but not like I watch you run. There's a way that you and women in general run and she reminded me of how a guy might run." Pete's revelation got them to call Jake back.

"Gender swapping artifacts?" Jake repeated thinking about it before sitting at the catalog computer. "There's only a few that we have and even fewer we don't, there's Hannah Snell's handkerchief, she was known as James Gray in the seventeen hundreds to search for her lost husband. Frieda Belinfante's conducting baton, she escaped the Gestapo by hiding as a man. Ehud Barak's eyeglasses, he disguised himself as a woman to kill members of the Palestine Liberation Organization. Wait of course, how could I forget, Hua Mulan."

"From the Disney movie?" Pete asked as Jake nodded.

"It was her life that the movie was based on and it was speculated in Warehouse twelve that the medal she was awarded by the Emperor became an artifact but we couldn't ever locate it."

Meanwhile inside the restaurant Matt took out the medal and pinned it to himself watching his reflecting in the refrigerator change into a beautiful woman. She smiled and walked into the front of the restaurant to rob them.

"So you think a guy is changing his appearance into a woman to rob places?" Myka asked as Pete nodded.

"Yeah I mean it's the perfect disguise, especially when the woman doesn't really exist like the cop and that thief at your high school reunion. Walks in as a crook, robs the place and once outside becomes the cop. Except with one less person, so she could have become a," he paused, "He. Matt the kid from the alley!" Running back to the store just as Matt, looking like a woman, ran out with a bag of cash.

"Stop right there!" Myka shouted but Mat turned and ran but he didn't get very far as Myka teslaed him and he went sprawling to the ground. As the police came Myka and Pete took Matt around the alley. Looking her up and down Pete smiled and Myka hit him.

"Ouch, no not that, that," he pointed and she saw the medal on her chest and smiled with him pulling it off watching as Matt returned to normal. Bagging it sparks flew in the air as they dragged Matt back out and handed him to the police. "Check his place for the diamonds." Once Matt was safe Myka and Pete sat in their car watching him go.

"At least we didn't spend the night in each other's bodies," Myka said and Pete chuckle and she hit him, only lightly though as they started for home.

Pulling into a rest stop so that Myka could freshen up after falling asleep in the car Pete watched her go with a smile. Getting out himself, to stretch, he walked around the small park seeing a young man with a backpack hitting several things with a stick and he got a vibe. Not a bad one but that the kid wasn't just randomly tapping that stick. Taking a seat near him Pete sighed and smiled at him when the boy looked up.

"I'm sorry, I just found this over there I didn't know it belonged to anyone," said the young man, a kid really who set the stick down.

"That's okay," Pete said with a smile, the kid looked like he was starving. So Pete fished out five dollars in ones out of his pocket, "How about as a reward for finding this I give you some money for the vending machines?" The boy's face lit up as he nodded taking the money and giving the stick to Pete.

"That's a truly amazing thing sir, but I want to tell you something, I was hitch hiking yesterday before I found that," with that he left just as Myka came over.

"What have you got there?" Pete shrugged and tapped it on the table, the moment he did he heard a sound but saw amazing colors and he understood that this was an artifact that could trap you here forever.

"Get a bag Myka," he said as he tapped it again without thinking about it, it was so beautiful. Quickly rushing to the car she grabbed a bag and came back as Pete tapped his own leg with it. Prying it from his hands she tossed it in and it sparked as she held it from her. Looking at each other they were both amazed that they found another artifact not realizing the hiker was standing in the darkness of the alcove watching them.

Back at the warehouse Pete followed Jake as he placed the medal close to a white flower.

"That is Jorinde's Flower from the Brothers Grimm, it returns things to their normal form and will balance out the medal." Moving onto the music aisle he picked up the baton, "This guy is an interesting find, Pierre Benjamin Monteux's conductor baton not only does it allow you to see music but it entrances you in the same place forever, unless someone else gets it away from you," setting it down he could tell Pete wasn't really listening and he relented, "Fine let's go, I'll show you Sandro Botticelli's palette which changes your skin color." Pete was laughing as they walked off, behind them the baton moved a little.

**AN – Artifacts mentioned/used**

**Hua Mulan's War Medal  
****Jorinde's Flower  
Pierre Benjamin Monteux's conductor baton  
Sandro Botticelli's palette **


	2. Jean Valnet's Aromatherapy statue

**AN – Once again please read and review but more importantly enjoy. Please support the official release.**

Yawning during his shift, which wasn't strange considering Carlos worked the graveyard shift at a gym that was open twenty four hours which was good for those who work night shifts like he did. During the graveyard shift there was a skeleton crew of maybe five people at most. And now he was walking around the outside making sure all the doors are locked. Finding one open he sighed thinking it was going to be Tony or Samantha catching a smoke break. Opening the door he was shocked to see that there was someone else there. About to say something he felt a foot come down hard on his own foot causing him to open his mouth in a scream. For some reason he felt and saw a cotton ball fly into his open mouth. Instinctually he closed his mouth and instantly he felt like he was going to die. Before he could spit the ball out he felt strong hands keeping his mouth shut. Feeling the air leaving his body he weakly struggled before crashing to the ground, dead.

Now free to explore the gym without worry of the security guard the man walked up to the main office where the owner would normally be here but since it was just after midnight no one was around. The prized item he was after was a hat inside of a plastic case. Opening it up he put it away only to hear a gasp from behind him. Turning he saw Samantha standing there, her mouth open as she started to scream only to have a cotton ball thrown into her open mouth.

The next morning Steve and Pete were standing out in front of the gym where the two employee's bodies were being wheeled into a corner's van.

"So run us through this one more time," Pete said as the owner of the gym, James sighed.

"Look all I know is that someone came in and killed my security guard and one of my employees. The only thing that was missing was my prized houndstooth hat that belonged to Alabama coach Bear Bryant." Steve nodded and Pete said thanks and went to the EMT.

"Hey bud, what killed them?" The man chuckled.

"They show all signs of being suffocated except there is nothing they could have been choking on but a cotton ball and no one suffocates on a cotton ball."

* * *

"Of course you can choke on a cotton ball, you'd have to digest a lot of them," Jake said from where he was looking through the catalogue while Myka spoke to Steve over the Farnsworth. "It was a diet trend for a little while but aside from that if it was an artifact."

"It was, they managed to get them and bagged them and there were some sparks."

"Okay well I would venture a guess at it being Valentin Bondarenko's cotton balls; he was a pilot who died in NASA when he was inside of a chamber that was enriched with oxygen. We have a good amount of them but probably not all of them, obviously."

"That wasn't the only thing though; whoever used this also took Bear Bryant's Houndstooth," Steve said and Jake dropped what he was holding.

"What's wrong?" Myka asked looking worried.

"That hat allows the wearer to see advanced strategies and how to get around them if you trust it, it was why he was such a great coach, well that and his own experience which makes it more powerful. I was looking for it to help me break in along with my compass." The idea hit Myka first.

"So if you wore the hat and found the warehouse you would be able to get through all the safety measures in order to get in?" Jake nodded.

"With such a large place it would have helped me get to the painting that much faster."

"Déjà vu," Pete muttered as they looked at him confused. "Come on another person trying to locate something inside of the warehouse using artifacts to snag artifacts? Doesn't that remind you of an agent turned thief turned regent?" That got a laugh from everyone except Jake who reddened a little. Walking over to Steve he looked at the two agents.

"Don't bother setting up a trap for this guy, if he's using the hat he'll easily bypass it." Myka nodded.

"So do we just wait and see if we get another ping nearby?" she asked hoping it wasn't so but knowing it probably was.

"Sadly yes, we don't have anything to go on, nor any motives but Steve and I will make sure everything here is secured. We will make sure the dark vault and their backup generators are doing well and that the gooery is ready to go." Once they vanished Myka closed the Farnsworth and looked at Pete.

"Should we stay in the area or head home?" she asked as Pete smiled that mischievous smile. "No I will not use to company card to get us a hotel room."

"Come on Mykes we need a vacation and we're still on call so why can't we enjoy ourselves a little?" Giving her his puppy dog eyes as he moved super close to her that she just gave in, cheering he gave he a quick kiss before running to the car not complaining about her driving. Smiling and sighing she turned and went to the car as well. As Myka was paying for the room Pete was busy picking up those pamphlets for tourists, not just going for the fun ones but the boring ones as well. Not for Myka but because old usually meant possible artifact.

The hitchhiker's gut told him that he could just walk right in and pass the secret agent, that Pete wouldn't notice him at all. Though it was a big risk he was wearing the Houndstooth hat so he readjusted the box under his arm and walked straight in behind Pete, pass Myka and into the elevator. With his finger hovering over the button he pressed three and the doors closed just as Myka got their room key, three ten. Walking down the hall towards the room he believed would be theirs he snagged a door key off a cleaning lady's cart and entered room three ten. Moving quickly he set the box down and carefully pulled the Aromatherapy statue out setting it next to the other relaxation items. If he lit it now they would notice something was up so he just left it alone letting the hat lead the way. He entered the stairwell as the elevator down the hall dinged and the two agents came out.

"I'm impressed Pete," Myka said looking over one of the pamphlets she took from him, Fort Morgan looks like a place we might find an artifact considering its role in the Civil War."

"Thank you but first we relax," he said holding the door open for her as she went inside. Seeing that she wanted to get online and do research he went to the window and opened the blinds spotting the Aromatherapy statue and moving it light it. "Let's get comfortable in here for a bit before heading down to the spa and once we are all loose and ready to take on the world we can go sight-seeing." Myka had indeed sat in the chair at her laptop but turned around in the chair smiling at him as the pink smoke rose into the air. Inhaling deeply Myka had to admit the oils in that status were already starting to work their magic on her.

"Okay one massage and then we," she paused seeing Pete swaying with a content little smile on his adorable lips. Pulling herself up she frowned at how light headed she was feeling as Pete stretched and lay down on the bed. Although her legs belt like wet cement she stepped over to the bed and sat down looking at the statue, with her eyelids feeling heavy she noticed the eyes on the statue glowed red before she curled into Pete and fell asleep.

Myka had been right about Fort Morgan and it wasn't that far away as the hitcher shuffled along with the other tourists in the small group. The tour guide spoke about the fort's construction in 1834 and the hitcher only half listened keeping his eyes open for any place that one might hide something. Eventually they made it to the old commander's quarters and that's when the hitcher felt the urge to move away from the group.

"Major Richard Lucian was the Fort's last commander before the end of the Civil War; he was such a loyal commander to the south that he destroyed the Fort's weapons before leaving. This would land him in jail for several years before he confessed and was released." When they turned the corner the hitcher stayed behind entering the old room moving towards the desk before sitting at the chair. He could feel the history in this place and sliding his fingers through the dust on top of it. Running down the leg he noticed something in the wood and pressed into it revealing a hidden drawer and inside a pouch which he pulled up and looked inside, pleased to see what he was looking for.

"Hold it right there," came a voice and the hitcher looked up to see a guard standing there. Slowly setting his backpack on the desk he rose keeping the pouch low as the man started towards him. "Did you get separated from the tour group?" The hitcher nodded pushing the pouch into his pack and pulling something else out. "What do you have there?" the guard asked as the young man tossed a rope at the guard who almost dropped it. "What the heck is this?" he asked as the hitcher smiled and spoke.

"A weapon, almost as powerful as the weapon I am looking for." Before the guard could react the rope started to wrap around him and even though it originally looked to only be a foot long it was now curling around him pinning his hands to his sides. The rope wasn't going to stop there as it started to squeeze and the guard screamed. To stick around and wait or to run, the hitcher left the rope behind and grabbed his backpack, running.

"Wait," Claudia called out once the elevator doors opened and Steve rushed out into the hall, "What if they aren't answering because they are in a compromising situation, since they're dating and all?"

"Maybe Pete but Myka wouldn't let the Farnsworth ring for that long," Steve said leading the way down the hall but as he reached for the door he felt Claudia's hand over his own.

"Wait look down," she said and they both could see the pink smoke leaking out from under the door. They both stepped back looking at it.

"If the room is filled with smoke shouldn't the smoke detector go off?" Claudia asked Jake through the Farnsworth.

"And you say the smoke is pink?" Jake asked as Jennifer came over to see them as well.

"That's because it's not smoke, per say, its oil. Jean Valnet was a French Surgeon who used different types of oils to put his patients into a relaxed state. I believe they are being affected by his Aromatherapy statue which puts people in a dream-like state." Smiling and reaching into her bag Claudia pulled out a hose type thing.

"Extended camera, never leave home without it," she said moving to the door and slipping it under. They watched as she moved it around seeing the dragon statue on the table by the TV and at first she didn't see anyone else until she noticed Pete's foot hanging off the side. "Good news is that they are on the bed together and as far as I could see, clothed. Bad news is that smoke is everywhere."

"You could try to bag it but you'll only have a few seconds to do it before it affects you too. I'd say twenty to thirty seconds tops." Jake advised them as Jennifer came into the frame.

"See if there's a cleaning cart anywhere, we have an artifact from Alexander Polyhistor who was an ancient Greek geo-mapper when he was in the mines he discovered that you could use a sponge as a filtration system to prevent breathing in toxics in the air. We have his sponge here which does you no good but it is based off some truth. A sponge now could grant you another thirty seconds at least and that might be enough." Thanking her Claudia went to a cleaning lady's cart and reached for a sponge when Steve stopped her, reached under and grabbed a wrapped one.

"Don't know about you but I'd take a non-used one," he said and she smiled nodding, taking it from him. Moving to the door she got a bag ready and covered her mouth with the sponge before opening the door and plunging into the wall of pink smoke. It was thick but at the same time he could see the pair happily curled up together on the bed and the statue sitting there with its eyes glowing. Moving quickly she opened the bag and slid it over the statue as there was a lot of sparks and the smoke dissipated. Dropping the sponge she went over to the pair as Steve came in as well. Shaking Pete away they watched as he rolled over and stretched.

"That was a great, refreshing nap," he said noticing Claudia and Steve, "What are you guys doing here? Did we get a new ping?"

"Yeah but that was hours ago," Claudia said snapping Myka awake and looking out the window to see that the sky was darker.

"What happened?"

"You got whammied," Steve said opening the Farnsworth to show Jake the artifact, "Score one for Jennifer it's the aromatherapy statue."

"That was in here before we checked in though how did he know which room we would be in?" Pete asked but answered himself first, "The hat."

"I can't believe it," groaned Myka shaking her head in dismay, "Was that the ping?"

"No a security guard was killed at Fort Morgan," Steve said as Myka pulled on her jacket and the foursome left the hotel room.

"I got a vibe about that one, that's why I brought the pamphlet," said Pete.

"Well as far as the report goes the guard was suffocated."

"Another cotton ball?"

"No, this time it was a rope but the Corner who came in to take the body touched the rope which, according to his partner, wrapped itself around him like a snake until he turned blue."

The ride to the Fort was a quick one and upon arrival and flashing their badges they stood in the small office with the two bodies. Kneeing down to see the foot long rope on one man's chest Myka, wearing the gloves, picked it up and bagged it as a shower of sparks flew into the air. Opening the Farnsworth she confirmed that they had it.

"Okay that's great but the rope wouldn't have been the artifact from the fort, someone would had to have brought it there," Jake explained flipping through one of the large books as Artie looked through another. Pulling the Farnsworth towards him Artie spoke.

"The rope belongs to the Davenport Brothers, magicians who excelled at rope tricks. They were called wizards who used supernatural means to do amazing tricks which was rebuked by P. T. Barnum in 1865. However most believed that P. T. just did that as a favor to the Davenport Brothers," Artie explained as Jake pulled the Farnsworth back.

"If your guard was in that room than it is safe to assume that the thief was looking for something in there and that just so happens to be the commander's room." All of them started to search the room carefully as he spoke, "The last commander was Richard Lucian who was arrested after the civil war for the crime of spiking the weapons in the fort before he surrendered. That act caused several of Northern soldiers to die when they tried to use the tampered weapons."

"Found something!" Claudia shouted drawing everyone to her where the desk was and the still open secret drawer.

"Do we have another do-hickie that shows us the past five minutes?" Pete asked.

"Not travel size," Claudia said as she leaned in close noticing a void in the dust, "But something was here and now is gone."

"We don't have any artifacts here of Richard Lucian here at the warehouse but that doesn't mean it isn't out there," Jake mused, "The thief is long gone by now, has a body count of four and we still don't know his intentions."

"Do you think whatever of the commander's the thief has can help him get into the warehouse?" Myka asked but Jake shrugged.

"No idea, there's only a few ways to actually get inside and we are triple checking everything."

"Still we should get back so I can update the system," Claudia said rising before leaving with Steve following. Shrugging Pete made the after you to Myka who left and called in the corners to take the bodies away. Outside he noticed the tour group taking pictures and he was struck with an idea holding up a one moment to Myka and the others before entering the gift shop area. Walking up to the woman behind the counter he smiled at her.

"Hey, do you guys keep records on who comes here in the tours?" he asked as the woman smiled at him.

"No, but we do ask them to sign the log of visitors, did you remember to sign it yourself?" Pete shook his head as she handed him a pen. Turning he scanned the log seeing that all the ones on the page were dated for today. Looking over his shoulder at the woman who had taken a call he coughed loudly to cover up tearing the page out, pocketing it and handing the pen back before leaving. He had a good vibe about the thief signing this page and maybe back home Claudia could work her magic to look into these people.

**AN 2 – The artifacts used**

Jean Valnet's Aromatherapy statue - Puts people in a catatonic, dreamlike state  
Bear Bryant's Houndstooth hat - Wearer sees advanced strategies  
Davenport Brother's Rope - Self ties victim, downside will tighten so much to kill  
Richard Lucian's pouch of Gunpowder - Destroys metal in seconds  
Alexander Polyhistor's Sponge - Perfect gas mask  
Valentin Bondareko's cotton balls - When placed in mouth steals oxygen from body within ten seconds unless removed


	3. John McFarlane's Ball-pein Hammer

**AN – Read and enjoy, please support the official release.**

Of the thousands of exhibits displayed in the National WWII Museum in New Orleans there was one minor one that was often overlooked. A few books that had managed to avoid the book burnings in Italy were on display but one was special and that was the one the hitcher had his eyes on. Walking the area twice he waited until no one was around before pulling out a pouch and spreading some of the ash onto the back of the camera. Upon contact the ash started to dissolve the back turning the camera off, which gave him a few minutes as he walked over and took one of the books tucking it away and moving away from the camera into a small corner. Turning the book over in his hand he pulled at the spine until it slid out of place revealing a pair of old folded glasses. Tucking those away carefully he put the spine back on and went to place it back where it was just as the guard came over. Heading to the camera he checked it, confused about what happened before noticing the hitcher leaning close to the book.

"Sir I need you to back up," the guard said as the hitcher leaned back.

"You might want to move that book though, it's too important to just be sitting there so easy to be taken."

"I'll pass it on to the curator," he said dismissively when the hitcher stopped him.

"I mean it; look closer to it, that book once belonged to Maurits Cornelis Escher. You know M. C. Escher, the artist?" Shaking his head he walked away hoping the brute would pass it on, in case the agents caught up again he wanted to make it harder to have them guess what he was after and once he got it he could finally move on to the final stage and acquire what he always wanted, a weapon with unlimited power.

Opening the door for Myka Jake followed her into Shreve, Crump and Low the famous jewelry store in Boston, Massachusetts. There was a ping here that they noticed when an expensive piece was pulled from auction and Claudia found out it was because the pure silver vase was now steel, something had changed the metal of the vase. Jake wanted to stretch his legs and Pete wanted to work something out with Claudia so when the ping came in Jake offered to go with Myka. Inside of the shop they noticed it was oddly empty aside from one employee sitting behind the counter reading a book.

"Seems a bit quiet in here," Myka said as the young man jumped up his book tumbling to the floor.

"Yes actually we're closed for the afternoon I guess I forgot to lock the front door." Myka showed him her badge.

"Special case, so we heard that you donated a silver vase to auction to find a cure for cancer but withdrew it. Care to explain?" The man looked visibly concerned and for an escape route.

"Please don't try to run," Jake said and the man looked defeated.

"My name is James McFarlane; my ancestor was the man who created this shop when Paul Revere was his neighbor. Although we have a part of this company in my family still a merger allowed most of it to be taken over. We still make brilliant pieces but I'm not allowed to give anything away without running it by the other members of the board and they always say no. I couldn't use any of the expensive materials so I used basic steel to make pieces."

"But steel pieces wouldn't bring in the money you would need to buy the other members out," Jake said trying to speed it up as James nodded, "How did you do it?" Reaching into his pocket James removed a ball-pein hammer. Watching as he picked up the little metal paperweight he tapped it as it change from the tarnished metal to silver. "It only lasts for a week at most and I could have let it sell but I didn't want to trick those donating money to a charity."

"You're a good man James, otherwise you wouldn't have cared what happened to the pieces that sold." Myka said as Jake nodded. Reaching for the hammer Myka gently took it from him as he looked up.

"Am I in trouble?" he asked and they shook their heads leaving him to get back to his book. Once outside they bagged it, which only caused a few sparks before calling home.

"Artie we got John McFarlane's Ball-pein hammer, turns things silver for a week." Myka relayed as Artie nodded absently.

"You two are still in Boston right?" After she nodded he moved on, "I need you two to check out a disturbance at the Boston Public Library. There are those online messages from people in there."

"Tweets," called Claudia off screen.

"Yeah whatever, tweets from the people inside about a poltergeist scaring people inside."

"A ghost?" Myka asked skeptically.

"Or something that causes illusions, I'll research it more here just call me when you get there and describe the disturbances."

"Guess we have a haunting to investigate," Myka said to Jake after closing the Farnsworth, shaking his head at this Jake climbed into the car to take them to the library.

After closing the Farnsworth Artie turned to Jennifer, Claudia and Pete. Using the page from the tour group Jennifer would write the person's name on a piece of paper and put it in the Domesday Book allowing Claudia to get an address so they could track them down. The artifact that Jennifer was using to trick the Domesday Book was Frank William Abagnale's pen a master of forgery. For the most part they were locating families who were on vacation, a few local teens.

"It was a good idea Pete," Jennifer mentioned looking at the list with only three left.

"I had a vibe that this was important," he said with a sigh looking over at Artie, "Jake and Myka are chasing ghosts now?"

"Considering that the Boston Library wasn't haunted until today I suspect an artifact involved. Come and help me in the stacks." Regretting being left behind now he walked towards where Artie was not seeing the image he would have remember of the hitchhiker that gave him Pierre Benjamin Monteux's conductor baton as he came up as Matthew Pierce. His image showed him as a man in his early thirties with scruff on his face, the beginnings of a beard, and messy brown hair. Matthew's most striking feature was that he had heterochromia iridum, one eye was brown the other was green. The image went away as Claudia put it in a person of interest folder before moving onto the next.

Considering that Matthew needed a specific wing to be cleared he had stuck his latest artifact in the main hall of this area of the library on the east wing. Making sure it was high and hard to reach normally he had used a knife to pin a single, old piece of paper to the wall. The uniqueness of this paper was that this was an artifact, George Lunz's deed to the Amityville House, which caused paranormal things to occur wherever it was activated. So as objects started to move on their own and a ghostly figure walked the stacks everyone ran out of the library allowing Matthew to enter one reading room and walk up to the special painting that adjourned the wall, "Cube with Magic Ribbons" by M.C. Escher. Reaching into his pocket he pulled out the glasses and put them on which instantly allowed him to reach up and touch the painting entering the world of Escher's insanity. The glasses belonged to Escher's father who was the only person to really understand his son's work. All of Escher's works shared a thin line which allowed Matthew to enter here, and exit elsewhere most importantly exit through the Escher Vault within Warehouse 13.

Entering the Warehouse from the vault Matthew, wearing the Houndstooth hat looked up and down the aisles trying to think of where he needed to go. As he had hoped and the agents feared the hat allowed him to get to the book section where he found what he was looking for, Voynich manuscript. Hefting up the book in his arms he didn't realize he triggered a silent alarm as he went back to the vault.

Hearing the alarm go off Pete ran over to where Claudia was typing away on the computer.

"What happened?"

"He's in the warehouse, somehow and he's taken something," Claudia said pulling up the artifact that was removed bringing up an image of the Voynich manuscript causing Artie's eyes to go wide. "Why Artie what is it?"

"That's just it, we don't know yet, it holds something so we put it in here however we never got around to figuring it out. It's a Codex in a language that no one has ever translated, not even myself although I took a shot at it before another ping came in. There's rumors of what it might say, everything from a hoax to ancient secrets."

"How did he get in?" Pete asked as Claudia brought up one of the cameras and Pete watched the man wearing the Houndstooth hat as he approached the Escher vault. They watched stunned as he opened the door and went inside. "The Escher vault, isn't he going to get lost in there?"

"No rewind it Claudia." She did and they could see his face but Pete still couldn't make it out. "He's wearing glasses; they probably stave off insanity and let him transverse." Artie thought about it for a moment then snapped his fingers, "There's a painting of Escher's in the Boston Library, he must have used that painting as access into our vault." With that Pete grabbed his tesla and started towards the door. "Where are you going?"

"I'm going to go help Myka and Jake."

"You won't make it, we just need to stay here and figure up what they are after."

* * *

Entering the front of the library against a flow of people running out Jake grabbed one of the college kids.

"Hey what's going on?" he asked the shaking kid.

"I don't know, I was studying in the art section for Social Studies when the clock started to go backwards, then my book went flying. The chick next to me, the water in her water bottle started to boil, then there was this," he paused almost unable to shake the words free, "Little girl with glowing red eyes." Letting the kid go they relayed that to Artie over the Farnsworth.

"Are there any statues that came alive?" Artie asked but they relayed no so it wasn't a Ghostbuster related artifact.

"We are so looking back at that one later," Pete quipped.

"Any Southern Ghosts, slaves, things like that?" Artie went on down the list.

"No, it's not anything from Myrtles Plantation," Jake said, "They mentioned a little girl." Instead of just standing there they made their way to the main reading area in the east wing. Pushing through the doors they saw the back of a little girl in a faded blue dress, her head down. Myka took a step forward as Jake placed his hand on her shoulder, "Myka I don't think you should." But that was as far as he got as the girl turned around to reveal she had no face but still screamed which echoed in both their ears. Dropping the Farnsworth still open everyone back in the warehouse covered their ears as well.

"Whoa what was that," Claudia said dropping her hands but seeing something from the angle she scrambled to the Farnsworth. "Look guys there's something on the wall." Looking up Myka saw what Claudia was talking about, a piece of paper held into the wall by a knife. Motioning to it from Jake Myka took out her tesla and fired a blast at the faceless girl who vanished as it was hit but only moving a few feet away. Running towards the wall Jake stretched to reach but it was just out of reach, sensing something coming he braced as a book hit him in the back. Getting down and covering his head as the books flew around hitting near him and sometimes hitting him.

"Myka," he called out and she turned to see him as the table flew and hit her in the side sending her crashing to the floor the tesla scattered to the floor. Reaching into his pockets he searched for anything he might have brought that would help them, pulling out an old fashioned sling he forgot he had this, David's Sling granted perfect accuracy. Looking around he saw a planter with rocks in it to weigh the plant down, picking it up he rose, loaded the sling and twirled it around aiming for the knife letting it fly. The rock hit it dead on and sent the knife flying into the books causing the paper to drift to the floor. Grabbing it he ran to Myka pushing away the table from over her and waking her up so she could give him a bag. Holding it to him they were surprised as the ghost grabbed the bag and held it just out of reach laughing.

"Give me the other artifact," Jake said as Myka handed him the bag pulling the ball-pein hammer and tapping the paper which turned silver causing the ghost to stop and everything that was floating to fall to the ground.

"Nice job," she said and he nodded moving over to where the ghost dropped the bag before slipping the sheet of silver into it. There were some sparks as the paper became paper again and Jake pulled it out as Myka reported in to the others back home.

"It's the deed to the Amityville House," Jake said putting it back in the bag, "Obviously causes haunting like effects. What was this about?"

"The thief, he used a painting at the library to enter the Escher Vault and steal the Voynich Manuscript." Artie said causing Jake to look very dismayed.

"Isn't that untranslatable? Why would that be a problem?" Myka asked as Jake looked at her.

"Why steal it unless you know what you're going to do with it? We now know what to look for except we have no idea what to expect."

* * *

Leaving the Library during the chaos Matthew walked out into the streets with the book tucked under his arm. Checking his watch Matthew saw he needed to get to the airport as soon as possible so that he can catch the next flight to Georgia, now that he had the final piece he planned on using the Georgia Guidestones to unlock one of the world's oldest mysteries, are we alone in the universe? Opening his backpack he slipped the book inside along with the glasses in a case. Zipping it up he put on the hat and started to walk towards the airport.

**AN – Artifacts used/mentioned**

George Lutz's deed to Amityville House - when activated causes illusions of a haunting  
George Arnold Escher's Reading Glasses - Prevents Insanity  
John McFarlane's Ball-pein Hammer - Turns things silver for a week.  
David's Sling - grants user perfect accuracy  
Frank William Abagnale's pen - Creates perfect forgeries  
Unnamed Ghostbuster Prop - Turns statues into living creatures  
Myrtle's Plantation's Noose - Creates Ghost like illusions  
Georgia Guidestones - unknown  
Voynich Manuscript - unknown


	4. Lady Po Nagar's Piece of Sandalwood

**AN – Please read and enjoy, if you could review as well. Please support the official releases.**

Being a bit overcast with a light drizzle Matthew pulled the Houndstooth hat down lower on his head, for the second time he was in a tour group listening to someone go on about the Georgia Guidestones also known as American Stonehenge. As the group moved on he remained still, it was the last one of the day but he had come on his own, his car parked a short walk away. Once everyone was gone he walked around it tracing his fingers against the letters. Long ago he thought that items that held power like the Houndstooth hat, or the Amityville Deed were hoaxes but when he came into possession of a real artifact he learned the truth. The world was filled with endless wonder as dark, dangerous secrets and as he learned throughout his life the person with the largest stick won. Kneeling in front of one of the pillars he removed the book from his pack and opened it up, his gut and the hat brought him to the correct page and the stones and the book started to glow blue and images entered his mind. The other Stonehenge, the Pyramids, and more, most importantly a single object that he saw once placed on his neck would give him an exoskeleton of space age material which would increase his strength, speed and give him all the power he ever wished for. Suddenly the light went away and Matthew lifted up the book as the oval object fell out of the pages onto the ground, the one in his vision. Without hesitation he put the item on his back and closed his eyes as the metal moved like liquid down his back, across his arms and legs causing his eyes to flash blue. Making sure to put the Manuscript away he strode over to the car knowing now he didn't need it but not quite ready to show his hand just yet, but soon.

* * *

"Why didn't I ever consider that?" Jake asked himself out loud as his fingers danced across a keyboard at the Warehouse.

"Consider what?" Claudia asked looking over his shoulder.

"There's a ping, the Georgia Guidestones were recently used, they translate any language you need but the Voynich Manuscript wasn't considered to be in a language, but in code." Artie came over sliding into the seat next to him as the others came up from behind.

"Do we have any copies, or scans of the Manuscript? Maybe we can translate it as well?" Myka asked hopefully and Artie shrugged.

"It won't hurt to try, Claudia you and Steve get the copies and go."

"Will do," she said moving to the other keyboard to bring up the clearest images to her phone and the printer. Once it came out she grabbed it and followed Steve out to the car. Bringing up the image himself Jake started at it for a long time.

"So the use of the Guidestones shows us that this is a language but none we have on record. Could that mean alien in nature?" Jake asked as Pete bounced a little.

"Aliens are real?"

"As far as we have seen, no." Jake said causing Pete to stop bouncing, "Every time we get proof of alien life an artifact seems to be behind it."

"Like Jacob's Horn," Myka said reminding Pete about that adventure.

"However we can't rule anything out considering where we work," Jake said continuing to search through the inventory. Artie brought up all of the most recent files to double check everything when the pictures from the Fort came up and Pete jumped forward.

"Wait Artie, zoom in on that one," he said pointing at Matthew Pierce. Once Artie did he snapped his fingers, "Vibe works again, and that's the guy that gave me the stick when we were coming back with Mulan's medal."

"Pierre Benjamin Monteux's conductor baton," Jake said and he nodded quickly.

"That puts him at two locations of artifacts that we've recently come across," Pete said as Jake pulled up the images of the thief in the warehouse. Using Claudia's program he rotated the camera and removed the glasses to reveal Matthew again.

"That's it; the thief is named Matthew Pierce who according to the book is a single man who lives in San Francisco, California who is majoring in business and politics. There was no identification on why he turned into a thief or how he knew about artifacts but Artie sent Pete and Myka to his house to check into it. Once they were gone Jake looked at Artie.

"Be frank with me, what might happen next?" Jake asked and Artie shook his head.

"Anything I guess but considering he resorted to stealing and killing I doubt it's anything good."

-San Francisco, California-

After showing their badges Pete and Myka were led up to Matthew's apartment where the superintendent let them in. The man had let them know that Matthew's lease was almost up and he had been informed that Matthew was relocating once it was done. Thanking him Pete edged his way into the front living room.

"Why are you being so cautious?" Myka asked him as Pete turned around to tell her that Matthew had already killed two people but he found he couldn't speak. "Pete are you okay?" She asked as she stepped forward then saw the statue behind him and understood why Pete couldn't talk. Resting on a side table was a statue of three monkeys, "Pete look out for," but suddenly she saw one of the Monkey's eyes flash and she was struck blind stumbling over her own feet and crashing to the ground. Seeing Myka go down Pete rushed over to her. "No Pete you're right there's a trap waiting for us or anyone. I can't see but there should be a statue of some Monkeys nearby." Not deaf Pete nodded and turned to see the three Monkeys sitting there, moving towards it he saw the eyes flash behind the hands of one and the world went black on him as well. Undeterred Pete moved in the direction he thought it was feeling where the table was and the three Monkeys. Feeling along his belt for the bag he opened it up and moved to drop it inside, of course not seeing the flash as his vision started to return. Quickly moving over to Myka he tried again.

"Mykes are you okay?" Pete asked as she nodded turning from him for a moment before pushing herself up.

"You were right about the trap, was it a vibe?" he nodded and she smiled, "Let's check the rest of the place out but made sure to be careful we don't know if he has any more surprises for us." Meeting back up together in the living room they called Artie over the Farnsworth.

"There are no other artifacts here aside from these Monkeys." Pete said.

"Those belong to Gandhi," Artie said.

"We do have his laptop, where he was going he probably figured that he needed to pack light so we have proof that he's traveling to Georgia for some reason but that's not all. It looks like he has a second flight that takes him to Washington D.C." Pausing to think about it Pete got an idea and looked up at Myka who seemed to come to the same conclusion.

"Artie what if he's going to kill the President and try to take over the United States?"

"That would be very bad," Artie said moving over to where Jake was typing away on the computer before sighing and spinning to look at them.

"As a regent I would have to tell you that if he kills the President or makes it well known that artifacts exist we'd probably declare Warehouse Thirteen a failure and set up to move it." Artie looked scared but Pete and Myka were confused. "When the Warehouse moves you guys won't go with it, it will pick a new caretaker; new agents and you will all be out of a job. I'd still be a regent but it would be put up to a vote to see if I can take care of the artifacts again." Racking his brain Artie was trying to figure out a way to stop him.

"Okay," Jake said coming over to the Farnsworth, "First off we need to use Ambrose Bierce's Civil War map to locate him exactly and while we are doing it, are you guys closer to the zoo or Golden Gate Park?" Myka went out to the window and looked out seeing the zoo a few blocks away.

"The zoo."

"As much as I love a zoo, maybe not the monkeys, why would we go?" Jake was silent before cursing under his breath.

"Forget it, I can't think of an item that could teleport you to him."

"It's okay Jake you can take it easy," Artie said placing his hand on his friend's shoulder.

"But we might lose the warehouse." Jake said throwing his hands up in the air but Artie once again tried to calm him down.

"Jake the entire time I've known you, you have proven to be the most resourceful agent ever if you just calm down and take a deep breath I'm positive you will think of something." Taking his friend and mentor's advice Jake took a deep breath and closed his eyes trying to think about former snags, trips that took him to the Golden City. "A month into our lives here at the warehouse Jennifer and I tracked down a man who was using Saint Francis of Assisi's Habit to command the animals of the San Francisco Zoo to rebel. Having an eye for artifacts I noticed that there was an old scene of Aladdin and the lamp in the children's area but the lamp looked different from the rest. Maybe the original piece broke off so someone replaced it with the other lamp but the lamp that is there is the original Aladdin's lamp. After returning home with the Habit, since the artifact wasn't activated I didn't rush to get it again but I did look into it. Unlike the story the lamp didn't grant wishes however it did save the young man's life, Aladdin was trapped in a cave system and the lamp teleported him from it." Opening his eyes from the story he looked at Pete and Myka, "Go to the zoo and get the lamp, hold it between you two tightly and think of the White House, anywhere safe and it will teleport you there."

"We knew you could do it," Myka said closing the Farnsworth and heading out the apartment with Pete. Back in the warehouse Jake released his breath still nervous about it all.

"Like I know your talents I know theirs, Pete and Myka can do it I promise you that," Artie said and Jake nodded standing up, "Where are you going?"

"When we find Matthew ourselves I want to be there as well, you can come with me but we have to help them stop that monster," Artie was confused but nodded, "We are going to need Lady Po Nagar's piece of Sandalwood in order to teleport to them as well." Knowing they had that in the warehouse Artie nodded and grabbed his bag following Jake into the warehouse. According to Cham legend the founder of the Cham nation was Lady Po Nagar who was originally married the Emperor of China but once he refused her to go home. Using a piece of sandalwood she managed to escape by vanishing when it arrived back on her homeland where she became the first Queen of Cham. Together Jake and Artie touched the piece of wood while Artie withdrew a water bottle from his bag.

"Picture the stones," Artie said and Jake nodded picturing it in his mind as Artie poured water on the wood and they vanished.

-Elbert County, Georgia-

Arriving at the stones just as a group was leaving Claudia and Steve went up kneeling where Matthew had been a while ago. In fact lying there in the tall grass was the very book itself, discarded. Picking it up and setting aside the copies Claudia held it up trying to get it to work.

"We should have asked for instructions," she said as Steve noticed something and reached out touching the stones causing the symbols to glow blue and the letters in the pages to glow as well as turn to English. Reading over her shoulder as Claudia read Steve gasped.

"Claudia, is that saying what I think it is saying?"

"If I got it right this is telling us that the secret of the manuscript is another artifact, a powerful, alien artifact." Steve said as a flash of light and suddenly Jake and Artie were there. "Whoa what are you guys doing here?" Jake smiled as Artie slipped the piece of wood and the water bottle into his bag.

"We wanted to come and help as best as we could using an artifact that uses teleportation to get here," Jake explained as he looked at Steve.

"What's the bad news?" Artie asked.

"Aliens exist," Claudia said, "And normally that would be cool but the manuscript was basically a puzzle box and the reward opening it is an alien artifact that could be used to grow plants in otherwise desolate places."

"That sounds like a good thing right?" Steve said hopefully as Jake sighed.

"That's why we need to test artifacts first they could appear good before but could cause a lot of harm like Rod Serling's Cigarette Case. Whoever possesses it will always speak the truth, which might seem harmless enough but it caused a huge fight with many people hurt before we bagged and tagged it. Considering the type of man Matthew has proven himself to be he will demand power from the government, from the world."

"Then let's get going to Washington D.C. with that wood you have," Claudia said and as Artie started to say no but Jake stepped in.

"Why not, Lady Po wasn't the only one who went home, she took her two sons and daughter, and we have the right amount of people." Jake said looking over at Steve, "We would need a safe place to land so you need to clear your mind of everything except that place and since you're from there it might be easiest for you." Steve nodded and closed his eyes clearing his mind of everything except a safe house that was retired but still kept under his name just in case, as he did this Artie opened his bag took out the water bottle, poured it on and they all vanished.

-San Francisco, California-

Flashing their badges got them into the zoo and if they were spending more time here Pete would have offered to pay but the vibe he got seeing how panicked Jake was felt powerful and bad. Moving through the turnstiles they went to the map where Myka pointed out the area with Aladdin's Adventure in it. Since it was early morning there wasn't a lot of people and they quickly got to the statue where Pete tried to pull the lamp off only it didn't budge.

"Pete look it's rusted on there," Myka pointed out as Pete let it go to look around. The last person that was in the area left through the south exit so Pete pulled out his tesla and fired at the lamp with no or very little effect.

"Any ideas?" Pete asked as Myka looked over at a zoo keeper's cart seeing a hammer sitting there. Picking it up she examined the statue and slipped the claw under a portion that wasn't completely rusted and pushed down against it, after a few seconds Pete wrapped his arms around her and helped push it down and suddenly there was a crack as the lamp tumbled to the ground and the pair fell into a heap.

"Pete?" Myka said softly feeling Pete's hands holding her to make sure she didn't get hurt and she enjoyed it for a moment before the rush of it all came back. "Pete the lamp." That snapped him back as he rose and helped her up and they rushed over and picked it up. "Remember what Jake said picture some place in D.C."

"How about my place?" Pete asked with a smile and she punched him lightly only visiting it once and only being in the living room.

"I can picture your living room only though."

"That'll do," he said pulling her close and rubbing the lamp, picturing the couch and love seat set that he grew up watching the television on. Myka was thinking of the bookcase with books she was surprised he would own as well as a picture of him as a child with his father at a telescope and suddenly there was a burst of light and they were gone.

-Washington D.C. -

There was a thud as the foursome landed in Steve's living room, a thud and a crash since Steve and Claudia landed on the couch, Jake went through the table and Artie hit the chair so hard it fell over backwards. Rushing over to their fallen friends Claudia helped up Artie while Steve helped up a frazzled Jake.

"We are flying back," he said adamantly as Steve smiled and nodded as Jake stumbled and stepped on the remote turning on the TV where the news report was on. All four of them looked at the TV to see a news anchor talking about a tree that sprouted up in the middle of the highway causing a car accident. It was weird, and very suddenly. "Looks like Matthew is starting to give us some trouble, his target will probably be the President, see if you can bring up Pete and Myka." Claudia nodded and opened the Farnsworth a moment later Myka's face appeared on the screen.

"Next time we are flying," she said into the device which got Claudia to grin.

"Glad to see the lamp worked, where are you?"

"We are on the way to the White House, we called ahead to a friend of Pete's in the Secret Service, spun a tale of Eco terrorism and since we saved the president a few years ago they are letting us speak to him but that's as far as we got."

"We'll meet you outside to have a decision on how to stop Matthew." Jake called out as Claudia closed the Farnsworth. Outside Steve led them to a garage where his Prius was parked and they all climbed inside. Pulling out they rushed as quick as they could to the White House where Pete and Myka were waiting for them. Hugs were shared as they looked at Artie and Jake.

"Any goodies for us?" Pete asked hopefully as the two exchanged glances and smiled. Opening his bag Artie rummaged around inside.

"Once we learned that the Guidestones were involved I considered Aliens and wanted to find artifacts that might help us," Artie said as he pulled out a pair of coins. "In the Roman Empire this man was a mediocre brass crafter who witnessed something called 'Angel Hair' which was a sighting of aliens. As far as we can tell he added the hair to the coins to add a silvery effect to them but after a few days they vanished. Before this rubbing this coins together would paralyze dogs but we think it will paralyze the alien technology as well, of course we can't be sure."

"If it does then you'll need this," Jake said handing over a Napkin Ring. "That's from the Mary Celeste not only does it make you invisible but it will but him in a trance, unfortunately the Mary Celeste wasn't empty everyone was just invisible and unable to call out. If you manage to do that then use this," he handed a cross on a chain to Myka who slipped it on, "That will let you see him still so you can bring him back so we can get the artifact and bronze him." They looked over at him as he shook his head, "We can't risk someone like him being out, he could locate another artifact and be back to square one." Putting on a purple glove Pete put the napkin ring into his pocket hiding it away.

"Wish us luck," Pete said as he and Myka went in but there was a scream and they took off towards it running across the lawn and into the backyard where a hedge maze sprouted instantly. Standing at the entrance they could see Matthew and the president, moving closer than, as quiet as possible they listened in.

"I could take my power to any third world country and make them more powerful than here but why start all over again?" Matthew asked and Pete could see that some vines had grown down the fence and was binding him. The grass had also pulled the secret service down and had them pinned to the ground. "So here's the choice, leave office today and I won't kill your family inside of my maze." The president swallowed hard.

"We don't negotiate with terrorists." He said calmly as Matthew snarled, lifting his hand to use the power the aliens granted him when a burst of electricity hit him and knocked him back causing the vines to loosen.

"Freeze Pierce!" Myka shouted giving her that moment of surprise that she knew his name and she took out the coins, "Please work," she said as she rubbed the coins together and Matthew did cover his ears and fall to the ground as a shrill whistle pierced his head. Since he had gone around the maze Pete tackled Matthew from the other side and forced him to hold the napkin ring which his hand gripped on before vanishing. Stopping the coins Myka ran over as the vines and grass fell away but the maze remained, moving pass them the President went into the maze to get his family as the other agents rushed after him while Myka pulled Matthew up pulling his still body behind while Pete tried to just not run into him. Once they were out and by Steve's car Jake pulled on the necklace seeing Matthew.

"Crap I guess this means I'm taking him back," he said holding Matthew and taking the piece of wood picturing the Warehouse as Artie poured water on it and Jake vanished.

-Warehouse 13-

This time Jake threw up in a nearby trashcan that Jennifer had brought him as he arrived in the Bronze section waiting for him. Trading off the necklace Jake sat nearby as Jennifer used a goo sprayer to retract the alien device into the small metal oval it was once before and once it was put aside they removed the Napkin Ring from Matthew's hand before situating him in Bronzer.

"Was it worth it?" Jake asked as Matthew sneered at them.

"No, only if I succeeded but when I get out of here I promise you I will obtain the ultimate power and you will rue the day you locked me up in here." Shaking her head Jennifer pressed the button as the door slid shut and he was bronzed. While Jennifer went to find a place for the Alien tech Jake moved Matthew alongside of the other villains of the world. Looking at him one last time Jake turned and walked back up to the main office to see how far out the others were.

When Matthew saw the woman agent shoot him with that overall harmless weapon he opened the pouch in his pocket and dumped the contents out. Considering his clothes at the time were cloth nothing happened but now that it was bronze it started to slowly break off. It might take a while but now Matthew had all the time in the world.

**AN – Artifacts used/mentioned**

Georgia Guidestones - Allows a person to read any language  
Mahatma Gandhi's Three Wise Monkeys - Causes deafness, muteness and blindness  
St Francis of Assisi's Habit - commands animals  
Aladdin's lamp - Teleportation  
Lady Po Nagar's piece of Sandalwood - teleportation  
Rodman Edward Serling's Cigarette Case - Makes holder speak their mind at all times  
Cassius Dio's Bronze Coins - When rubbed together causes a high pitched noise that can only be heard by dogs and 'aliens'  
Mary Celeste's Napkin Ring - invisibility, keeps you in a trance  
Teresa of Avila's Cross Necklace - Allows one to see invisible things.  
Alien Tech - Control of plant life


	5. Rebecca Towne Nurse's Noose

**AN – Please read, review and of course enjoy my take on Warehouse Thirteen. I own nothing, please support the official release. **

"We have a ping." Artie said from the computer talking to the only other person in the room, Claudia.

"Oh yeah, where in the world are we going today Artie?" She asked spinning in the chair while spinning the globe on the desk next to her.

"Salem, Massachusetts there's a woman who was attacked by a stranger a few days ago, or so she says."

"You don't believe her?"

"No it's not that, she has accused several people swearing on her life however one of them has an ironclad alibi. Unlike other times we actually know what the artifact is," Artie typed a few things and an image came up of a basic cross, "This is Abigail William's cross, she was one of the first girls to accuse women of witch craft."

"So it should be a walk in the park?"

"Could be, however when there's one artifact it might cause another one to become active again. Considering the history behind Salem it wouldn't be hard to locate some bad artifacts, so go and get Pete and Myka. The three of you should be able to handle things." Artie said causing Claudia to pause for a second and Artie to turn and look over at her. "Did I stutter?"

"Well no but normally you have us go in pairs, like Jinks and I or Pete and Myka or a mix of those."

"Yes but as I said you're going to a hot spot of American History and a time where a lot of bad events have happened. Even though most women were falsely accused there are stories that some of them were witches that would fly or control animals. Both of which could be explained by artifacts." Artie said bringing up a few artifacts they already had snagged and bagged. Items such as Bill Kaysing's Feather which altered gravity, Kaysing believed the moon landings were hoaxes and used the feather to prove it. Most people thought that he also forged his videos so he didn't get far with it. The next image was an Olive Branch, Noah's which was used to control animals. Nodding at him Claudia sighed.

"Alright I'll go get the others," she said standing and leaving the Warehouse to head to the Bed and Breakfast. A few moments after she was gone Jake entered from the Warehouse taking Claudia's seat, it had been a week since they bronzed Matthew and finally all his artifacts had their locations.

"Artie can I ask you something?" Jake asked rocking in the chair, the older man looked at his friend nodding, "Do you think catching Matthew was a little too easy?"

"He managed to get to the President and hold his family ransom, the Houndstooth hat allowed him to see how to get in but it's understandable to think that he should have seen us coming but we have no idea how the alien tech effected his brain. Once activated he probably couldn't see strategies anymore." Jake nodded but didn't look convinced, "What would be his grand plan if it included getting himself bronzed?"

-Salem, Massachusetts-

"Is it the anniversary of the trials or something?" Pete asked as he walked with Myka and Claudia. They had landed an hour ago and checked into their hotel room, basically just a place to have as a base of operations. Now they were walking towards the courthouse where the woman, Janice Jones, worked as a stenographer.

"No, why do you ask?" Claudia asked looking around before noticing why. The center of town was decorated like the 1600s with torches instead of street lights and carriages, no cars. Even the few people were wearing puritan clothes. "Whoa they even changed the lights to torches, that took time and." But Pete caught her off.

"Claudia look at that," they all looked up and saw a noose hanging off a tall tree branch.

"That's taking it a little too far," Myka said as they started to run towards the town. Slowing down due to a vibe Pete looked up and started to call out when Myka and Claudia's clothes changed to puritans clothes but the most shocking part was they became black and white. In her hands the Farnsworth completely shut down. Myka turned and went back to Pete but suddenly stopped unable to move further.

"What's wrong?" Pete asked but he couldn't hear her and Claudia held up her dead Farnsworth. "Look for the artifact," Pete mouthed as Myka checked and found she still had the bag and nodded turning to Claudia.

"Come on Claudia Pete will try to figure things out there we need to find the artifacts, the cross and whatever would cause this to happen," she waved her hand about and Claudia nodded.

Left along Pete pulled out his phone and called Jake since Artie probably didn't have his on.

"Pete? What's going on why aren't you calling on the Farnsworth?" Jake asked.

"We got to Salem but there's some sort of force field surrounding the center of town including the courthouse, it looks like the witch trials or something. Myka and Claudia are in there and their clothes turned all old timey and I guess the Farnsworth broke as well." By then Jake had put it on speaker phone and Pete heard a crash as Artie picked up.

"Pete can you see the center of town?" Artie asked as Pete looked back.

"Maybe, I'm not sure. What am I looking for?"

"A noose, it's going to be in the epicenter of the infected area."

"Yeah I thought it was a little too much even for decoration why?"

"Because we bagged that before," Jake said, "Jennifer, Artie and I before the calendar." There was some movement as Jake took the phone and Artie jumped on the computer.

"So you know how to stop it?" Pete said a little excited.

"Well yeah, you need to bag it, but you have to do it fast because it's going to get bigger until the entire town of Salem is back to the 1600s."

"Jake, Pete, according to the database it's Rebecca Towne Nurse's Noose, she was hung as a witch but later proven she wasn't. We did bag it and according to the system it's still there but we need to check it to confirm. Pete give us ten minutes then we'll call you back to confirm with you what it is, if you go in there first then your phone will be as useful as the Farnsworth." After confirming Pete looked longingly at where Myka had been before heading to the hotel to make sure he got some extra bags before heading in. Running down the street he passed a ford truck but a few moments later it turned into a horse tied to a post as the area got bigger.

Coming around the corner Jake gasped for air as Artie came up the other aisle on a Segway.

"It is gone," Jake gasped out as Artie nodded looking around the area to make sure it didn't fall or anything. There was no rope but there was something else there which he tapped and lifted to his eyes to see what it was. Gently sniffing it he gasped.

"It's bronze," Artie said and they were both off running to the bronze section. Now they were both tired as they arrived to find that Matthew was no longer there.

"How is that possible?" Jake asked.

"It was as if he didn't become completely bronzed but only the outside." Kneeling Jake found the bag which still had some of the dirt or whatever it was in it. Sniffing it he thought about it then realized what it was, "The last commander of the fort, Richard Lucian sabotaged the ammunition before leaving his post, and this smells like gun powder. So before turning bronze he dumped the gunpowder into his pocket which ate away at the bronze around him."

"He took the noose to Salem but this must be a distraction, we know he wants power but what artifact could be in Salem that he would go after?" Artie asked as Jake went to and pulled open one of the many newly installed computers thanks to Claudia.

"Out of all the women who were hanged for the accusation of witch craft there were only two that were determined to be guilty of something. Samuel Parris Danvers' slave Tituba and a woman who was actually hanged before the trials Ann Hibbin and anything of hers could be artifact related, and possibly very dark."

Back in the hotel room Pete had placed the bag inside of his shoe, thinking back on what happened when Myka and Claudia had been whammied, their clothes had completely changed so he didn't know if that meant he would be able to keep his gun or not or anything modern in his pockets so away it went. His phone rang and he picked up.

"What's the word?"

""It is the noose, bag it and the area should return to normal. It is the first thing you need to get but watch out, it looks like Matthew escaped. He took the noose probably as a distraction method and Artie and I think he's going after something of Ann Hibbin a woman who was hung for being a witch. Not just accused but actually being one so definitely something artifact related," Jake said.

"How did he escape?" Pete asked.

"He used what we determined as Richard Lucian's pouch of Gunpowder which he probably used to break the bronzing process as well as the Trojan Horse, it lets you get into any place of your choice but only if you know how. Looks like Matthew knew how to do it." Jake sighed then continued, "Look I figured you would need some help considering where you were going and I slipped something into Claudia's backpack, is it there?" Pete looked around and found her bag feeling a little nervous going through her bag. Eventually he pulled out a flask and returned to the phone. "There's a flask in here, did Artie tell you I'm in recovery?"

"Yes I know, that's why there's no alcohol, it's actually holy water. The flask was the only thing Saint Teresa of Avila had to provide baptisms while traveling a drunk that she healed gave her the flask. The water is the artifact, the flask will never be empty, it is how she was able to perform so many baptisms."

"Alright I'm going to head out, wish me luck."

Heading down stairs he paused at the last step looking at the front desk where a woman in a bodice was writing with a quill at the light of a fire lantern. Taking a breath he stepped forward, gasping as he felt the artifact change his clothes. Hurrying pass the woman he went outside to see most of the area was black and white. A church bell rang out sounding that something was going on at the courthouse. With that he started to run back to where he had seen the noose.

Watching as Pete walked off Myka frowned at looked over at Claudia.

"Guess we should head towards the courthouse and see what is going on," she said and Claudia nodded as they noticed a group of people gathered outside. Myka gasped when she saw the old Stocks where thieves would have been put, luckily they were empty. When they arrived there was a woman on her knees as a man stood nearby, he looked like a judge.

"We are here because Janice Jones has come to me with grave news; she says she witnessed Ruth practicing Witch Craft! What say you to these accusations?"

"I have no idea what's going on, please you have to believe me!" the woman said trying to stand up but one of the men gently set her down again.

"I saw her fly on a stick!" Janice shouted from where she was sitting. Frowning at the whole spectacle Claudia stepped forward.

"Stop all of this we are well above anything like this you can't just devolve and jump at a chance to kill an innocent woman," she shouted as the crowd went silent and Myka thought Claudia had broken through when Janice stood up, pointed at Claudia and shouted.

"Witch!" and the crowd as they ascended on her and brought her up to the stage next to Ruth.

Myka tried to get up with her but the crowd pushed her back. The crowd was shouting for blood and for them to be hanged as the two men up on the stage tied both girls' wrists and started to pull them towards one of the trees. Searching her pockets quickly for anything that could help and found the tesla had survived the trip, sort of, it looked more steampunk than ever like something Wells might have made. As one man threw a rope over the branch Myka aimed and fired a blast at the branch causing it to crack and fall and everyone to scream and panic as Janice pointed at Myka and cried out Witch again but everyone was too scared to approach her.

Climbing up the tree towards the artifact Pete grumbled considering that he used to do this a lot as a kid it was a lot harder than this was. Halfway up he swung off a little before using his strength to pull himself back up he shimmed himself back up and got to the top. Pulling out a knife he reached and grabbed the noose in one hand, the knife in the other and the bag in the mouth. Stretching out he started to saw the rope which caused a few sparks to jump from it causing Pete to slip again causing him to drop the knife and fall himself grabbing onto the noose to prevent from falling but considering that it was already halfway cut through his weight caused the noose to tear and him to hit the ground. Groaning in pain he tried to open the bag but it hurt to move, part of him wanted to just lay there when he heard an explosion. Worried that something happened to Myka or Claudia so he thrust the noose into the bag causing a large blast of sparks before a wave went out as everything returned to normal. Once the wave hit everyone they all fell to the ground. Pulling herself up Claudia looked around and saw Janice so she quickly pulled the cross off and tossed it into her bag as well.

A little while later Pete, Myka and Claudia sat at one of the tables in front of the courthouse with the Farnsworth open. Pete was groaning as Myka rubbed his back.

"That was close, I've been called a witch before that was the first time I was almost hanged," Claudia cracked as Artie gave her a wry smile. She noticed that Jake looked perturbed, "What's wrong Jake?"

"Oh, sorry I just have a feeling that we missed something, are you sure Matthew wasn't there?"

"Yeah, after everything was settled we looked around but there was no sign of him or anything else really out of place," Myka explained.

"Yeah, Myka checked the courthouse, Claudia interviewed the two women Janice and Ruth as well as the judge in charge and I interviewed the guy selling hotdogs." Pete explained getting a laugh from the others.

"No vibes?" Jake pressed on.

"No vibes," Pete agreed and Jake finally relented.

"Alright, well head home as soon as you can and we will put the noose back and find a spot for the cross."

-Boston, Massachusetts –

Thirty miles away Matthew was digging under the oak tree where Ann Hibbin's execution took place. After a few shovelfuls of dirt he hit a wooden box and after a few more minutes he was able to pull it out. Being careful he opened the box and smiled seeing the old, worn Bible inside along with a few other things. Withdrawing the Bible he could feel the dark power from within and allowed himself to smile. However he wasn't done yet, he had a few more special items to gather before he was ready because there were a lot of powerful things in the world but only one place that had the largest collection of them all and he would need an army to take it on. Soon he would be ready though, to take over Warehouse Thirteen.

**AN - Artifacts used/Mentioned**

Abigail Williams' Cross - Causes wearer to declare others as criminals  
Rebecca Towne Nurse's Noose - Reverts world to the 1600s  
Noah's Olive Branch - Animal Control  
Bill Kaysing's Feather - Alters gravity  
Trojan Horse - Used to gain access to anywhere  
Saint Teresa of Avila's Holy Water - Creates protective barrier  
Ann Hibbin's Bible - unknown


	6. Thich Quang Duc's Candle

**AN – Please read, review and enjoy. Also support the official release.**

Leading the way towards the Dark Vault Jake held a box in his hand containing an evil artifact, behind him was Pete and Steve who had their own boxes.

"What exactly causes an artifact to be placed in the Dark Vault?" Pete asked.

"Well usually its items which have dangerous effects," Jake said opening the door and leading them in. There was a large pillar where one could slide each of the fifteen stone spots and place inside a few of the smaller artifacts. Setting his box down Jake opened one of the slots, "In here is Gautama Buddha's sand which really calms the evil within each of these items."

"Steve's into Buddha," Pete said as Steve nodded.

"So you understand how calming the practices can be," Jake said opening his box as the others set theirs down as well. Pulling on purple gloves he looked at them, "These are so bad when we put them away you have to be really quick because the gloves won't work for long, the artifacts will burn away the gloves just to get to your skin to effect you." Opening his box he let them see what was in there.

"Wait, a sheriff's badge?" Pete asked confused.

"Yes it belonged to Henry Plummer; he was a sheriff but he was discovered to also be the leader of a gang, a gang that murdered over one hundred people. This badge causes you to murder as well as have the ability to influence others to join with you," moving quickly he put the badge into place as well as covering it with sand before closing it and stepping aside to let Pete go next. Nodding Pete came up and opened his box, which contained…a spoon? Pete started to reach for it.

"Seriously?" Steve asked as Pete blushed.

"It may look like a spoon but that caused a lot of issues, that's Te Ara's Pewter Spoon which caused the Boyd Massacre where natives attacked a ship and ate everyone on board, causes cannibalism." Pete quickly pulled on a glove and set it inside the stone shelf tossing a bit of sand over it before closing it.

"Guess it's my turn," Steve said stepping up opening his box as Pete crowded over his shoulder in order to see what he got, a Nazi cross?

"That one is really bad, belonged to a female Nazi commander, Maria Mandl, she was the most known for killing children during World War Two and that's exactly what it does." Steve nodded following the others, quickly putting it away before closing it and following Jake and Pete as they left the Dark Vault.

"So everything in there causes you to want to murder or drives you insane?" Pete asked remembering when Sylvia Platt's typewriter almost killed him in the past.

"That and more, there's a vase that sucks your life force to fix itself." Pete shivered at it before leaving with the others to where Jennifer was deciding where to place the newest artifacts.

-Los Angeles, California-

"Oh my gawd why is it so hot out today?" complained Stacie Roberts as she sat at a little table in a café sipping a diet soda with her best friend Heather. Heather frowned at her lifting her sunglasses up.

"It's not that bad, but you're right there's no wind. Did you want to go sit inside?" They had already ordered their salads but it wouldn't be hard to move inside. There was a yip and her little dog popped her head out of Stacie's bag. Course it would be harder to have Lucy inside but whatever made Stacie more comfortable but now Stacie had reached into her soda and pulled out the ice pressing it against her skin.

"God no, I feel like I'm burning up." And she did, Stacie was now crying.

"Do you have a fever?" Heather said standing and picking up her phone, "Or need an ambulance?" Lucy kept barking as Stacie started to scream as fire started to burst through her skin and suddenly she exploded in a ball of fire causing Heather to start to scream where Stacie had left off.

"There's a ping in L.A." Artie said to Myka, "Someone exploded in a ball of fire at a café downtown." He explained reading the news report on something Claudia had called a blog. There was a picture showing the now empty and roped off with Crime Scene tape. One of the chairs was scorched and obviously had someone in it as the burned the image of someone. Coming up behind him Myka frowned.

"Did Matthew steal Paul Tibbet's binoculars?" Myka asked remembering the shadow that was left behind when the man used it.

"No those are accounted for but you make a good point, this might be a nuclear artifact or something. Go get Pete and head to LA to see what you can find out."

-Los Angeles, California-

"I can't believe that poor girl," said Juanita Rodriguez as she finished putting away her cleaning supplies. Today she was working at the home of Doctor Richards and just fished cleaning while his wife, Judith had returned home from her walk. There was a little white TV on the counter showing news of the report. Judith considered herself to be a kind person who didn't ignore her help especially Juanita who had been with them for several years now. Looking up from her smoothie she barely glanced at the screen before nodding and turning on the blender. As the fruit inside started to churn Judith tapped her perfectly manicured nails on the marble counter top. Frowning Juanita picked up one of the several piece of mail, one that held some sort of thick circular item in it. Opening it up she dropped the half dollar sized piece of plastic in her hand looking over it before shrugging and slipping it into her pocket, throwing the envelope away. Looking over at the TV one last time Juanita went for the door however a spike of heat flew threw her body as she dropped her cleaning supplies to the floor. Turning off the blender Judith looked over at her.

"Dear, are you okay?" she asked looking at the mess that Juanita made.

"Tan caliente, estoy ardiendo," Juanita muttered as she popped her top button and started to fan herself before lunging for the blender and chugging the entire contents of it down. The sticky liquid not only went into her mouth but down her cheeks as she wasn't stopping there. Now upset Judith reached and touched her arm however crying out when she touched it as if she was burned.

"Juanita!" she called out but her skin was already starting to burn as she dropped the blender which shattered when it hit the floor and she exploded in a ball of fire right in front of her employer.

They didn't have the first scene to work with except pictures since Myka and Pete arrived a little late but, unfortunately there was a second scene, on their way there, with Pete driving, Myka able to look over the first crime scene photos. First was a heiress Stacie Roberts, the daughter of actor William Roberts and while the next scene took place at another mansion the victim wasn't the owner, Luke Reed doctor to the stars, or anyone in his family, it had been the maid.

"If I was to say there was a link I might think someone was targeting celebrities but this is L.A." Myka said as Pete pulled into the front driveway where the other police cars were. Climbing out he took point flashing his badge as the cop at the front door let them in. Heading right for the kitchen Myka paused seeing the wife crying in a chair while talking with a police officer. "Agent Bering, Agent Lattimore secret service can you tell me what's going on here and if this is related to the Roberts case?"

"Sure but why would the secret service get involved?" the officer asked, introducing himself as Detective Sanders.

"We always come in to make sure it's nothing terroristic especially with brutal killings. If they're not related then we will head back to D.C." Myka explained all business as Pete knelt next to one of the Crime Scene Inspectors who was taking pictures of what used to be Juanita.

"As far as we can tell they are related but just from the witness recognitions, Mrs. Reed said that Ms. Rodreguiz was complaining that it was too hot, spoke in Spanish then burst into flames. Ms. Blake, Ms. Roberts' friend, said that Ms. Roberts was complaining about the heat as well. It took some time but both woman admitted that the victims were hot to the touch. Mrs. Reed actually has a burn on her hand where she touched the victim. Honestly we can't say anything until forensics comes back but if I was to take a shot in the dark I'd say spontaneous combustion."

"That's not possible," the guy with the camera said standing up, "There are a few cases of spontaneous human combustion but those were rare and in all the cases there was something left of the person. This woman was instantly turned to ash completely, it's unreal."

"It's a crime scene not a TV show, we don't just make assumptions. Get those samples to the lab as soon as possible," Sanders said as he nodded to Myka before leaving. Rising Pete walked over to the door outside where no one was motioning Myka to come over.

"Spontaneous combustion does that sound artifacty to you too or is it just me?" Pete asked as Myka nodded and they went out by the pool where they could use the Farnsworth in peace.

"Yeah there's a few items that could cause a human to spontaneous combust, unknown to Pete we have a liquor area," Jake said getting a look from Pete so he held up his hands, "If we had a cookie area I wouldn't tell Artie about it, ouch," he said as Artie smacked him getting Pete to laugh about it and allowing Jake to go on, "There's a bottle of scotch that belonged to Charles Dickens' that does it, he used it to kill a critic and the only way to subdue his guilt was to write about it as he did in Bleak House. Also there's some wine that belonged to Polonus Vorstius, a knight who spontaneously combusted as well but you would have to drink them to get the effects."

"The report from both witnesses said they had drunk something, the girl a soda and the maid a smoothie." Myka said as Pete shook his head.

"But the maid drank the smoothie after she started to complain about the heat," Pete said remembering.

"That basically means we have no connection between the two. You'll have to interview the witnesses, real good old secret service interviews, or something I dunno," Jake said only knowing what the secret service did from reruns Twin Peaks and Bones. That earned a laugh from both agents as they hung up and decided to split the witnesses, Myka taking Mrs. Reed while Pete left to see Heather to get a run down on the day's events.

"I already told the cops everything, we were watching the news about the girl then suddenly Juanita just exploded," Mrs. Reed explained to Myka who nodded.

"Was there anything leading up to that point in time, do you have any heirlooms or antiques?"

"No, nothing like that," Mrs. Reed said as her eyes fell onto her mail, "There was a piece of mail that Juanita was opening. I saw it from the corner of my eye and figured it couldn't be for me because Juanita wouldn't open that so it must have said resident, or neighbor or something. She must have thrown it away." Myka went over and picked up the envelope holding it up as Mrs. Reed nodded. It looked normal enough but opening it up and squinting she could see some sort of imprint of something that was once there. Bagging it, it didn't spark, she slipped it away to see if Claudia could work something up to recreate the item. Thanking Mrs. Reed she left to go to the hotel room she and Pete had gotten, making sure there were no aromatherapy statues in the room.

Sitting in one of the interrogation rooms Pete was looking over the transcripts of Heather Blake about her day and Stacie's, there was nothing too strange. The pair had gone and received manicures and pedicures before heading to the local mall to shop. The police had done a great job asking her to talk about everything no matter how minor it was, and without realizing it they discovered something decent. Before leaving the mall they had bought a drink at the local coffee shop and Stacie liked to collect coasters of each place they get a drink at. Picking up a box he found all the bagged evidence and a vibe told him there was something in there. Shifting everything around he found the coaster with a happy bear on it. Examining it he lifted the bag and paused, it felt heavier than most coasters he had been around so he turned it over and there it was.

"It looks like a wax disc," Pete said into the Farnsworth before lifting it up and showing Jake.

"Claudia just recreated the image for Myka, there's no discerning marks on it either but we are looking through all the folders to see if there's anything we can find on the subject."

"How thick is it?" Artie called from the background.

"Maybe an inch or less." Pete relayed back.

"Claudia's image had a nick in it, are there any on yours and don't touch it just in case." Jake said as Pete did just that and saw a mark in the middle telling Jake about it. Jake snapped his fingers typing away at the computer. "It's a piece of a candle, the nick is the wick, and someone cut it into easy to use pieces. Juanita probably had it on her person so when she went up, so did that part of the artifact. You could bag it but there would be no effect, it's no longer a single, not even a duo, until we get all the parts it's incomplete but just as dangerous. And it is," a few more clicks and he sighed, "Thich Quang Duc's Candle yet another artifact that the system says is in here."

"Another distraction or is he just causing trouble?" Pete asked.

"Hard to know, you and Myka should go back to the coffee place and see if there are any more deadly coasters lying around or if it was a random act."

Since he was closer Pete just walked there and the woman at the counter remembered Stacie and motioned at the coasters but the pile felt no heavier than it should have but to make sure he asked to look at the stock but twirling them he asked.

"The coaster that Stacie got here had a bear on it, these don't."

"Yeah the only place that has a bear coaster is Black Bear Diner down on Seventeenth Street." The woman said.

"Does that sound odd to you, having someone else's coaster in your lot?" Pete asked as the woman.

"Kind of, but no, not really. Maybe someone collected it and just left it here by mistake." He took out a picture of Matthew and set it down.

"Have you seen this man?" The woman picked it up to study it before nodding.

"Tall mocha with a caramel swirl," she said, "Used to be a regular, good tipper as well."

"Used to?"

"Yeah he said he was going to be leaving the area, moving back home to South Dakota some place called Univille I think." Pete froze at that and knew he should be listening some more however his thoughts went home to Claudia, Jake, Artie, Steve and Jennifer. Then again why tell her where he was going, it wasn't a big town, perhaps he just wanted to scare Pete but his vibe was telling him that wasn't the case. "Are you listening?" the girl asked as Pete nodded.

"Sorry part of it, what was the last thing you said?"

"I told him I was sorry to lose a great customer and he laughed saying his business was done so I asked him what business and all he did was hold up some keys and jingle them but nothing else."

-Univille, South Dakota-

"_That's not possible, there are a few cases of spontaneous human combustion but those were rare"_

The Univille Diner was about to open for the lunch rush as Matthew slowly set the coasters down on the tables. He would be long gone before they were used and activated but he wanted to shake them up, really give them a good scare.

_In all the cases there was something left of the person. _

Hannah was refilling the fifth glass of water in five minutes, a lot of the diners were complaining of the heat but it wasn't really hot day and regardless Simon, the chef, had already cranked the air conditioner up already. There was a loud coughing behind her but before she could turn the man whose water she already filled reached out to ask for more and his hand actually burned her. Jumping back and uttering a little shriek she noticed that there were at least ten people sweating. Then the man's skin started to smoke and he exploded in a ball of fire which started a chain reaction as many other people did as well and all she could do was scream.

"_This woman was instantly turned to ash completely, it's unreal."_

In the warehouse lights were flashing as well as a siren alerting of one or more artifacts causing mass destruction. Claudia was typing away trying to discover the source of it all and finally nailed it down.

"Oh my," she muttered as Jake came over.

"What's wrong?"

"There's a report that several people in a diner all spontaneously combusted." She muttered as Artie came scrambling over.

"In L.A.? Are Pete and Myka okay?"

"No, not LA but here, in Univille."

**AN – Cliffhanger! Probably not for long though just until the next chapter is written, until then here are the artifacts used/mentioned**

Henry Plummer's Sheriff's Badge - Causes user to become a mass murderer, can also influence others to join, located in Dark Vault  
Gautama Buddha's sand - Calms the Dark Vault Artifacts, located in Dark Vault  
Te Ara's pewter Spoon - Causes Cannibalism, located in Dark Vault  
Maria Mandl's War Merit Cross - Causes user to want to murder children, located in Dark Vault  
Thich Quang Duc's Candle - Causes those who hold it to later spontaneously combust  
Charles Dickens' Scotch - causes spontaneous combustion  
Polonus Vorstius' Wine - Causes spontaneous combustion


End file.
